Magdeburg Water Bridge, Navigable aqueduct in Magdeburg, Germany
The Magdeburg Water Bridge is a steel structure that connects two waterways across the Elbe River and extends for 918 meters (just under 3,000 feet). Ships travel through a water-filled canal that rests on steel girders from both sides, positioned high enough above the river to allow barges to pass underneath.
Planning for this crossing of two waterways began before World War I, but wars and the division of the country halted progress for decades. Construction resumed only in the late 1990s and was finished in 2003.
The German name Kanalbrücke Magdeburg names both the city and the structure type: a bridge carrying a canal, not a road. It is part of the Wasserstraßenkreuz Magdeburg, where the Mittellandkanal crosses the Elbe. The bridge appears in the film Hanna at about 75 minutes in, and in Vitou the Kong.
A footpath runs beside the water canal and is open for walkers and cyclists, allowing visitors to see passing ships up close. It is best to come during fair weather when visibility is clear and you can also observe the river below.
The waterway on top is 4.25 meters (almost 14 feet) deep and wide enough to carry cargo barges that can load up to 1,350 tons. The crossing saves freight ships a long detour upstream and back down again.
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